No. 11, March 23, 2004

The Final Countdown Today (Tuesday, March 23) is Day 36 of the General Assembly's 40-day legislative session. Legislators have set next Friday, April 2, as the target date for final adjournment and will scatter the four remaining legislative days throughout this week and next, setting the calendar on a day-by-day basis. Correction Legislative Update erred last week in referring to the Liberty Center as a Georgia Southern University facility. The center - a special funding initiative in the University System's Fiscal Year 2005 Budget - is affiliated with Armstrong Atlantic State University, Georgia Southern and Waycross College. Legislative Update apologizes for any confusion this error may have triggered.

FY '04 Amended Budget Approved Following Conference Report

On Monday, the House and Senate endorsed a Conference Committee's proposed compromise on the state's Fiscal Year 2004 Amended Budget, approving a document that differs very little from the recommendations made by Gov. Sonny Perdue with regard to the University System of Georgia.

Per the governor's wishes, the approved budget includes $1.56 million to fund a rate increase for the Optional Retirement Plan. However, the Amended Budget also contains a 2.5 percent reduction in state funds mandated by the governor for all state agencies last August. This reduction amounts to $36.6 million for the University System.

Late last month, the governor notified the Board of Regents that - due to continuing uncertainties regarding the ability of tax revenues to meet the revenue estimate his budget was based on - he was reducing the University System's "A" or resident-instruction budget by an additional $6 million. This loss, he indicated, could be offset by transferring funds from the System's health-insurance reserves to operations. The additional $6 million reduction, therefore, is one of the major late-stage changes to the Amended Budget. Another notable change involves a reduction in the amount of state funding the Georgia Public Library Service will receive for PINES (Public Information Network for Electronic Services). Gov. Perdue's recommendation of $1.25 million for the operation of the public library automation and lending network was reduced to $1 million.

The Amended Budget's bonds package is what strayed most from the governor's recommendations in the hands of the House and Senate. The Conference Committee pared this portion of the budget down by deferring for consideration in the FY '05 Budget nine USG construction projects added during House and Senate deliberations. These projects include:

• $2.5 million for library construction in South Bibb County;
• $500,000 for library expansion in Wheeler County;
• $500,000 for the renovation of historic Davis Hall on the campus of South Georgia College;
• $5 million to fund Phase III of a fine arts building at Georgia Southern University;
• $5 million for a new science building at South Georgia College;
• $1.125 million for a student center for the Clarkston campus of Georgia Perimeter College;
• $5 million for a classroom building at the Gwinnett University Center (GUC);
• $2 million for the Fannin County Public Library; and
• $2 million for the East Coweta County Public Library.

Numerous Bills Still Alive and Kicking!

A number of bills of interest to the University System of Georgia made it past the 33rd day of the legislative session, the deadline known as "Crossover Day." As reported last week, the House and Senate versions of bills containing major reforms to the HOPE Scholarship Program - House Bill 1325 and Senate Bill 471 - each made the crossing from one chamber to the other before the midnight deadline on March 17. Other HOPE bills - such as House Bill 1011 (defining accredited secondary schools), House Resolution 1346 (urging the development of a standard grading system for K-12 students) and House Bill 341 (governing eligibility requirements for part-time students in private colleges) - remain viable as well.

House Bill 712, requiring publishers to provide an electronic format for print-access disabled students, underwent major changes before it was passed by the House, which protected faculty rights to select materials for their classroom.

A modified version of Senate Resolution 661, the "Academic Bill of Rights," is in the Senate Rules Committee. As a resolution, the bill may be called at anytime until "sine die" - final adjournment - is declared.

House Bill 1698 is intended by the author to help teachers find continuing-education courses as well as courses required for professional certification on line, thus avoiding long commutes to a college campus. Legislative Update will continue to watch and report on these and several other pieces of legislation as lawmakers complete the handful of working days remaining in this session of the General Assembly.